Can cross-group friendships influence minority students' well-being at historically white universities?
Past research has demonstrated the negative impact of race-based rejection sensitivity (RS-race) on institutional belonging and satisfaction among minority-group students in predominantly White universities. Given research documenting the benefits of cross-group friendship for intergroup attitudes, we tested whether friendships with majority-group peers would attenuate the effects of RS-race within these contexts. In a longitudinal study of African American students (Study 1), cross-group friendships with majority-group peers buffered students high in RS-race from lack of belonging and dissatisfaction at their university. An experimental intervention (Study 2) that induced cross-group friendship replicated the findings and established their specificity for minority-group students. We discuss implications for efforts toward diversifying educational settings.
Mendoza-Denton
Rodolfo
R
Department of Psychology, University of California, 3210 Tolman Hall #1650, Berkeley, CA94720-1650, USA. rmd@berkeley.edu
Page-Gould
Elizabeth
E
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011287:Prejudice; D012929:Psychological Distance; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012059:Rejection, Psychology; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012931:Social Environment; D012933:Social Identification; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology*